Musings, observations, and wonder at life's width and depth through a U.S. ex-patriot's eyes.

Wednesday, October 03, 2012

Oct 3 - Photo a Day - This Happened Today

Shared Diversity

Tonight's library drop-in Adult English Conversation class was small but lively -- just five returning students, plus my fellow facilitator and I; however, we represented a huge span of the globe.

After playing a silly warm-up game of fill in the blanks ("I have asnowball in my wallet because... I couldn't find anywhere else to keep it!"), we focused on hobbies and favourites.

Our group could have formed a band with singers from Poland, Korea, and France, a guitarist from Mexico, a French percussionist, and a Korean flautist. Two -- a librarian and a catering chef -- have transformed their hobbies into businesses. Two, myself from the U.S. included, are teachers. Three are runners/athletes, and we had scientists from Mexico and China.

As diverse as this group was, with its unique cultures, life experiences, and beautiful accents, the thing that struck me tonight was how many things, including our passion to learn, we had in common.